Purpose Of This Equipment
The coal forge is one of the fading pieces of equipment
for the knifemaker. Propane forges are rapidly becoming
the norm. Coal is getting harder for the general population
to obtain and sometimes it is required to buy it and have
it shipped in. This makes it costly. However, if you can
get it easily and in fairly large quantities, you may
want to make a coal forge. I used a coal forge since I
started forging until I build my first propane forge about
six years later. I still have the coal forge and keep
coal on hand because when you run out of propane on a
Sunday evening, it is nice to not have to stop working
but instead just fire up the coal forge and keep right
on going.
Materials
Like most other tools I have, the base materials come
from the scrap yard. The pieces you would need to build
a forge like mine are the following items.
1-1/2” angle
Iron
1/8” steel sheet
Car brake drum
2” Piping from hardware store
Electric blower about 150CFM
Construction
Cut your 1/8” sheet to the size you want your
forge to be. Mine is about 3” square. You use
the angle iron to build a table using the 1/8” sheet
for a top. Build a frame for the top to sit on but
be sure that one side of the angle is pointing up,
instead of down. Build the rest of the frame of the
table using your angle iron for the legs and the bracing.
Take a straight
edge and draw an “X”
on the 1/8” plate to locate the center of the
plate. Get the car brake drum and measure the outside
of the brake drum to determine the size of a hole to
cut in the plate so that the brake drum can be recessed
into the plate. Cut the hole in the plate using whatever
method you have. DO NOT exceed your hole six or you
will have trouble later. The smoother and rounder this
hole is the better. Place the brake drum into the opening
allowing it to rest on the flange. Grind off as much
as possible that is protruding above the plate without
risking weakening the drum. Remove the drum and turn
over. Weld the holes closed where the wheel studs used
to pass through. This will leave the center opening
only. Get a reducing bushing from the hardware store
that is large enough to cover the center hole in the
brake drum one end and as large as possible(but smaller)
on the other end. Weld the reducing bushing in place,
wide end on the brake drum. After welding the reducing
bushing in place add a 6” pipe nipple to the opposite
end of the reducer. Then add a tee onto the pipe, add
a 6” pipe nipple to the two open sides of the
tee. On the bottom pipe nipple, you need to add a cap.
There are a couple methods to doing this, I just screwed
a pipe cap onto the end of the nipple. If I were to
build another coal forge I would do it differently.
I would get a piece of flat plate large enough to cover
the end of the pipe. I would weld two small pieces to
that with a hole in it. I would also a small piece of
steel to the side of the pipe. These three pieces, two
on the plate and one on the nipple could receive a pin.
These would make a hinge. I would also weld a ¼”
rod to the plate under the hinge about 10” long
and put a weight on it. All I would have to do is lift
the weight to open the end of the pipe. On the open
end of the horizontal pipe you would attach the output
of your 150CFM blower and add an on and off switch.
Air flows from the fan up through the
brake drum and through the coal. The ashes fall through
the holes in the grate and collect in the lower pipe
nipple. Just lift the weight at the end of the ash dump
and the ashes will fall out, let go and the dump will
close.
I like my coal forge and don’t
think I will ever be without one as long as I have
access to coal.
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